Middle East

Quake causes panic in Indonesia; one killed

A magnitude 7.3 shallow earthquake struck the Moluccas islands in eastern Indonesia yesterday, the US Geological Survey (USGS)
Iran to give no quarter to US

Iran’s supreme leader upped the ante in a volatile stand-off with the United States yesterday, warning Tehran would continue
7.3 quake hits remote Malukus islands

A major 7.3-magnitude earthquake hit the remote Maluku islands in eastern Indonesia yesterday, sending panicked residents running
Egypt opens two ancient pyramids, unveils new finds

Egypt on Saturday opened two ancient pyramids south of the capital Cairo and unveiled a collection of newly found sarcophagi, some
51 injured as quake rocks Philippines

Fifty-one people were injured and several homes, churches and other buildings damaged yesterday when an earthquake sent terrified
US soldier killed in Afghanistan: Nato

A US service member was killed in action in Afghanistan yesterday, Nato said, the latest international casualty that comes as the US tries
KSA, Pakistan among 37 states backing China at UN

Saudi Arabia, Russia and 35 other states have written to the United Nations supporting China’s policies in its western region of Xinjiang,
Afghan hotel attack kills 3

Attackers entered a hotel in western Afghanistan yesterday and killed at least three security forces in an ongoing incident, an official told
Indonesia leader and runner- up seek post-election peace

The winner and runner-up in Indonesia’s presidential election which sparked deadly riots in the capital called for reconciliation
Crew members of detained Iranian tanker relesed

Gibraltar police have said that all four crew members of the Iranian Grace 1 tanker have been released on bail without charge after it was detained last week on suspicion of breaking European sanctions by taking oil to Syria.
Netanyahu vows to retain every West Bank settlement

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged Wednesday not to dismantle even the remotest Jewish settlement in the West Bank, in
Clashes kill 71 fighters in Syria’s rebel-held Idlib

Regime and jihadist-led forces were locked in clashes yesterday on the edge of an opposition bastion in northwest Syria after a jihadist-led advance that killed 71 fighters overnight, a monitor said.
Clashes kill 71 fighters in Syria’s rebel-held Idlib

Regime and jihadist-led forces were locked in clashes yesterday on the edge of an opposition bastion in northwest Syria after a jihadist-led advance that killed 71 fighters overnight, a monitor said.
Iran tried to seize tanker: Britain

Three Iranian vessels tried to block a BP-operated tanker passing through the Strait of Hormuz but backed off when confronted by a Royal Navy warship, the UK government said yesterday.
Khashoggi fallout: Saudi holidaymakers urged to shun Turkey

Diplomatic fallout over journalist Jamal Khashoggi's murder appears to be slowing the flow of high-rolling Saudis to Turkey, as calls grow within the oil-rich kingdom to boycott the holiday magnet.
‘Silence is not an option’

The United Nations human rights expert who conducted an independent probe into the murder of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi on Tuesday urged the US to act on her damning findings.
Afghan President Ghani calls on Taliban for peace talks

Now is the “right moment” for peace in Afghanistan, President Ashraf Ghani said yesterday as he once more called on the Taliban to
UK to face ‘consequences’

Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani yesterday warned Britain of “consequences” over the detention of an Iranian oil tanker off the coast of Gibraltar.
Amal Clooney to join legal team of Ressa

Prominent rights lawyer Amal Clooney says she will join the legal team defending Philippine journalist Maria Ressa, whose news site has
Rivals agree ‘peace roadmap’

US and Taliban officials will resume talks in Qatar aimed at ending Afghanistan’s 18-year war, hours after a delegation of Afghan
Sister of Saudi crown prince on trial in France

The sister of the crown prince of Saudi Arabia goes on trial yesterday in a French court over the alleged beating of a workman who was
Philippines faces call for UN probe into drug war

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s narcotics crackdown has become a “systematic” campaign of killing, Amnesty International alleged
Afghan rivals resume talks for peace

Dozens of powerful Afghans yesterday resumed talks with the Taliban in Doha, where a possible ceasefire is on the table along with key
UAE reducing troops in war-torn Yemen

The United Arab Emirates said yesterday it was redeploying and reducing troops across war-torn Yemen and moving from a “military-
Iran risks return of all sanctions

Iran yesterday said it will boost its uranium enrichment in a few hours above a cap set by a landmark 2015 nuclear deal, a move that could eventually culminate in the return of all international sanctions on Tehran.
Iran to lift uranium enrichment to 5%, above level in 2015 deal

Iran will announce an increase in uranium enrichment to 5%, a concentration above the limit set by its 2015 nuclear deal, an Iranian official tells Reuters, in a move signalling a deepening challenge to escalating US sanctions pressure.
UNSC calls for Libya truce as toll hits 1000

The UN Security Council called Friday for a ceasefire in Libya as the death toll from a three-month offensive on Tripoli reached 1,000,
Regime bombings kill 14 civilians in Syria

Syrian regime bombardment has killed 14 civilians including seven children in northwestern Syria, a war monitor said yesterday, in the
14 killed, dozens wounded

At least 14 people were killed and dozens more wounded when a busy market in northern Afghanistan was hit by mortar fire, officials
Babylon designated UNESCO World Heritage Site

The ancient city of Babylon, first referenced in a clay tablet from the 23rd century BC, is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, after a vote that followed decades of lobbying by Iraq.